Children's home run by Leeds City Council in Leeds

Inspection report for children’s home: SC033370 1 SC033370 Registered provider: Leeds City Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is run by the local authority and is registered to provide care for up to five children.

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Information about this children’s home

The home currently offers care for up to four children in line with the home’s statement of purpose.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in July 2020.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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requires improvement to be good

How well children and young people are helped and protected requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers requires improvement to be good

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requires improvement to be good

The children’s home is not yet delivering good help and care for children and young people. However, there are no serious or widespread failures that result in their welfare not being safeguarded or promoted.

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requires improvement to be good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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requires improvement to be good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: SC033370 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

16/08/2022 Full Good 15/06/2021 Full Good 30/10/2019 Full Requires improvement to be good 27/02/2019 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: SC033370 3

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improvement to be good

The children have built positive relationships with the staff as they spend quality time together doing activities both in and outside of the home. The staff genuinely care about the children, and children are comfortable in the presence of the staff. Children seek out affection from staff, and children were observed to seek out the registered manager for a cuddle.

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improvement to be good

For some children, education is a struggle. The registered manager recognises this, and she has worked hard with other agencies to try to address this. However, the plans that are in place for some children do not work and children continue to refuse to engage in education. This has prevented some children from achieving their academic outcomes. For others who have left school, plans are in place for them to start college in September.

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improvement to be good

Children have access to child-led therapy sessions. This helps the children to understand and manage their feelings and behaviour. Staff can also access the therapeutic services when they feel that they need additional advice on how best to support the children. This approach means that the children receive the appropriate care that they need to support their mental health.

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improvement to be good

Staff help the children to lead a healthy lifestyle. Children are physically active and enjoy a balanced diet, as they help to prepare and cook healthy meals. Some children have struggled to attend their health appointments. However, with the staff’s perseverance and support through ongoing conversations, the children now understand the importance of these appointments and now attend.

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improvement to be good

Children’s relationships with their families are important to them, and the staff understand this. Staff ensure that the children’s parents are invited to special events in the home, such as birthdays and other events. This inclusive approach allows the children to celebrate memorable events with those who mean the most to them.

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improvement to be good

Some risk assessments in place are easy to follow and include all know risks to the children. They provide actions for staff to follow to reduce the risk of harm to the child. Risk assessments are regularly review and updated when risk occurs. This means that staff are able to monitor and determine whether risks are reducing or increasing in frequency and severity. This helps leaders and managers to assess whether additional services are needed to better support the children.

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improvement to be good

Children’s safety is not consistently prioritised. The staff do not routinely follow the missing-from-home protocols that are in place to ensure that the children are Inspection report for children’s home: SC033370 4 located as safely as possible during the night. There are occasions when the agency staff are unable to go out and look for the children because they are not permitted to drive the home’s vehicle. This prevents these staff from going to look for children who are at risk of exploitation when they are missing from the home, or who engage in risk-taking behaviours, such as consuming alcohol.

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improvement to be good

Staff say that the children smoke tobacco and cannabis in their bedrooms. Staff speak to the children about the dangers of smoking in the home. However, children continue to do this. This exposes everyone, including the children, to the risk of fire.

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improvement to be good

Children have spent time in each other’s bedrooms. This was not noticed by the agency night staff. The details surrounding this incident are unknown as there are no records of it. Therefore, it is unclear how long the children were alone. When the permanent member of staff became aware of the situation, they responded appropriately. The registered manager took swift and effective action to prevent a reoccurrence.

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good

The registered manager is experienced in her role and supported well by the deputy manager. Together, they are respected by the staff and other professionals. They both lead by example, which determines the nurturing ethos of the home.

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good

The registered person does not consistently seek out employees’ references from previous employers when they are aware of pertinent information. This oversight has the potential to affect the safety and protection of the children.

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good

Leaders and managers have failed to notify Ofsted of a serious incident involving the children. This does not provide Ofsted with the necessary information on how the registered manager deals with serious incidents and what action has been taken to reduce the risk of harm to the children.

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good

Staff supervision sessions are frequent and provide the staff with an action plan to help them to develop in their role. The manager continues to review these actions and the staff’s aims and objectives. This encourages the staff’s ongoing development. However, this level of support and guidance is not provided to the agency staff who work in the home as these staff are not supervised.

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good

Training is a concern for the staff in the home. Upcoming training that is essential for the staff to help them to better understand the children’s needs and presentation is months away. This does not provide the staff with the necessary skills that they need at present to effectively meet the children’s needs.

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good

The staff were unable to support one child effectively when they moved in to the home. This caused an unsettled period for the other children living in the home. The child’s move in to the home was directed from senior leaders within the local authority and was done during the registered manager’s absence. The registered Inspection report for children’s home: SC033370 5 manager recognised this and took appropriate action to ensure that the children were not disrupted further. This resulted in the child moving on into a more-suitable placement.

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good

Multi-agency working and regular communication with professionals and parents embed a culture of shared responsibility. This means that plans for the children are progressed and that the children’s needs are at the forefront of their care. The manager confidently and appropriately challenges other professionals to ensure that the children can access the support and services they need. Inspection report for children’s home: SC033370 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

The education standard is that children make measurable progress towards achieving their educational potential and are helped to do so.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

help each child to achieve the child’s education and training targets, as recorded in the child’s relevant plans;

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Requirement Due date

understand the barriers to learning that each child may face and take appropriate action to help the child to overcome any such barriers. (Regulation 8 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)) 20 August 2023

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Requirement Due date

The protection of children standard is that children are protected from harm and enabled to keep themselves safe.

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to ensure—

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Requirement Due date

assess whether each child is at risk of harm, taking into account information in the child’s relevant plans, and, if necessary, make arrangements to reduce the risk of any harm to the child;

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Requirement Due date

have the skills to identify and act upon signs that a child is at risk of harm;

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Requirement Due date

take effective action whenever there is a serious concern about a child’s welfare. (Regulation 12 (1) (2)(a)(i)(iii)(vi)) 20 August 2023

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Requirement Due date

The leadership and management standard is that the registered person enables, inspires and leads a culture in relation to the children’s home that— 20 August 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC033370 7 helps children aspire to fulfil their potential; and

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Requirement Due date

In particular, the standard in paragraph (1) requires the registered person to—

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Requirement Due date

lead and manage the home in a way that is consistent with the approach and ethos, and delivers the outcomes, set out in the home’s statement of purpose;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that staff have the experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child;

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Requirement Due date

ensure that the home’s workforce provides continuity of care to each child. (Regulation 13 (1)(a)(b) (2)(a)(c)(e))

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Requirement Due date

After consultation with the fire and rescue authority, the registered person must—

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Requirement Due date

take adequate precautions against the risk of fire, including the provision of suitable fire equipment in the children’s home. (Regulation 25 (1)(a)) 20 August 2023

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Requirement Due date

The registered person must recruit staff using recruitment procedures that are designed to ensure children’s safety.

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Requirement Due date

employ an individual to work at the children’s home;

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Requirement Due date

if the individual satisfies the requirements in paragraph (3).

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Requirement Due date

full and satisfactory information is available in relation to the individual in respect of each of the matters in Schedule 2. (Regulation 32 (1) (2)(a) (3)(d)) 20 August 2023 Inspection report for children’s home: SC033370 8

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Recommendations

 The registered person should have systems in place so that the agency staff receive supervision of their practice from an appropriately qualified and experienced professional, which allows them to reflect on their practice and the needs of the children assigned to their care. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 61, paragraph 13.2)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that the staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective, and clear recording. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, using the social care common inspection framework. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. Inspection report for children’s home: SC033370 9

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Civic Hall, Calverley Street, Leeds LS1 1UR

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Inspector

Gemma McDonnell, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: SC033370 10 to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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